Facebook allows apps to access user’s address and mobile number

January 17, 2011 – 6:07 AM

In a move sure to have privacy advocates up in arms, Facebook will now allow apps to access a user’s current address and mobile phone number.

The new ”feature” was quietly introduced in a blog post by Facebook platform developer relations employee Jeff Bowen late last Friday night. The Atlantic spotted the post, in which Mr Bowen outlined the new ”user_address” and ”user_mobile_phone” permissions which developers can now hook into.

”Please note that these permissions only provide access to a user’s address and mobile phone number, not their friend’s addresses or mobile phone numbers,” he said.

According to Nicholas Jackson, associate editor at The Atlantic, the blog post was quickly inundated by users angry at another perceived invasion of privacy from a company already infamous for its lackadaisical attitude to user privacy. Curiously, Mr Bowen’s post was updated early Saturday afternoon and as of 1AM EST today no comments were visible, though it was possible to add a comment.

Sophos senior technology consultant Graham Cluley wasted no time in labelling the change a ”new level of danger” for Facebook users.